So if you’re a voter in the newly realigned 6th Congressional District, how do you get a hold of Republican Rep. Mike Coffman? Well, the answer is, reach out — he’ll get back to you.

For months, liberal groups have unleashed a barrage of criticism toward Coffman, saying he’s unwilling to meet with and listen to the concerns of the constituents he’s vying to represent in the new district — which went from being a GOP stronghold to one with a evenly divided electorate.

“There’s significantly funded projects … of paid political professionals who are out there to disrupt whatever I do,” said Coffman in a recent interview, noting that groups like Colorado Fair Share and CREDO Action SuperPac have made it difficult for him to do public events in the district.

Coffman said on different occasions these groups — Fair Share has a website that asks “Where’s Mike Coffman” — have visited his campaign office and have tailed him wherever he goes.

Because members of these groups might show up at an event, Coffman said he’s been unable to hold the open forums he would like to.

The two-term incumbent is being challenged by Democrat Joe Miklosi in the Aurora-based district.

Congressman Ed Perlmutter and U.S. Sen. Mark Udall pose with Tiffanie Tanner, granddaughter of former state Sen. Gloria Tanner, the first black woman to serve in the state Senate. ( Lynn Bartels, The Denver Post)

Former state Sen. Gloria Tanner (Ernest Luning/Colorado Statesman)

Congressman Ed Perlmutter was knocking on doors in a Northglenn apartment complex Saturday when a woman approached him and said, “Are you THEE Ed Perlmutter?”

It’s one thing to be recognized because you’re running for Congress and your picture’s all over TV, but in this case the woman in question was Tiffanie Tanner, granddaughter of Gloria Tanner, the first black woman to serve in the state Senate. Perlmutter couldn’t have been more surprised — or delighted.

“I sat next to your grandmother,” said Perlmutter, who served two terms in the state Senate, from 1994 through 2002.

Perlmutter, a Golden Democrat who is facing a challenge from Republican Joe Coors in the 7th Congressional District, couldn’t believe how much Tiffanie resembles her grandmother. “I get that all the time,” she said.

But that’s not the only odd couple: the other hosts are former U.S. Sen. Gary Hart, a Democrat, and former U.S. Sen. Bill Armstrong, a Republican. Among the special guests: Republican Dick Wadhams, who worked on Wayne Allard’s successful Senate campaign, and Mike Stratton, who worked on the campaign for Allard’s opponent, Tim Strickland.

The event Tuesday night at the Denver Press Club is billed as “The Odd Couples” and “an unlikely meetings of the minds.”

Joe Coors had a friendly encounter with the Wheat Ridge police today on the campaign trail in the 7th Congressional District while visiting a tire store. (Coors campaign)

Congressional candidate Joe Coors had a friendly encounter with the cops this morning after he stopped by B&F Tires with some doughnuts and coffee.

The visit was part of Coors’ “Java with Joe,” where he visits a business in the 7th Congressional District, greets customers and sometimes tours the enterprise. Coors is trying to unseat Democrat Ed Perlmutter. A customer at the tire shop — on West 38th Avenue a few block east of Wadsworth Boulevard — called his wife to ask her to bring his 99-year-old dad over to could meet Coors.

“We had a few minutes between waiting for the supporter to arrive so we broke out into an impromptu sign waiving session outside of the store,” Coors spokeswoman Michelle Yi said. “Two Wheat Ridge police officers pulled over while we were sign waiving. We thought they were going to tell us that we were doing something wrong but all they wanted to do was meet Joe.

The Colorado Republican party spent more than $400,000 — more than half their overall budget over two months this summer — with a consulting firm they signed on to register voters that has now been accused of potentially fraudulent activity.

Colorado GOP Chair Ryan Call confirmed to the Post late Thursday that he fired Strategic Allied Consulting earlier in the day after hearing about problems discovered by a Florida elections clerk.

Strategic, which hasn’t answered calls for comment, had a $2.9 million contract with the Republican National Committee to register voters in five swing states, including Colorado. A Florida elections supervisor found potentially fraudulant registration forms turned in by Strategic employees, including people registered with phony addresses and names, according to NBC News.

Colorado’s Republican party spent $140,000 in June with the firm and $326,000 in July for “voter contact,” according to the Federal Elections Commission.

Call said Thursday he was happy with the work they did in Colorado, but fired them after hearing about problems elsewhere. He wasn’t able to immediately say how much the party spent overall with Strategic Allied Consulting because there were invoices still out.

Call didn’t immediately return calls today about how many voters the firm registered in Colorado in June and July, when it was working for the Colorado GOP.

State Rep. Cheri Jahn, D-Wheat Ridge, and former House Speaker Andrew Romanoff at the 7th Congressional District debate in Arvada Thursday. (Lynn Bartels, The Denver Post)

Andrew Romanoff, former speaker of the Colorado House, has been everywhere on the campaign trail it seems and now he’s bringing his political knowledge to the University of Denver.

The Denver Democrat will explore the intersection of money, politics and public policy in his seminar “The Rising Price of American Democracy.” Guests include Secretary of State Scott Gessler, a Denver Republican, and former Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon, a Denver Democrat. For information on the classes, which begin next week, click here.

These days, Romanoff is providing commentary for 9News about the 7th Congressional District race. He sent out a fundraising appeal for congressional candidate Sal Pace of Pueblo. He walked precincts with Congressman Ed Perlmutter. He’ll be at a fundraiser for Rep. Daniel Kagan on Saturday.

Republican Joe Coors’ new campaign ad talks about Congressman Ed Perlmutter’s former wife and her relationship with the failed energy firm Solyndra.

The ad refers to lobbyist Deana Perlmutter as Mrs. Perlmutter. But she and her husband divorced in 2008 — months before Barack Obama was elected president and before Congress in 2009 passed the stimulus bill. Solyndra, the first company to be awarded a federal loan guarantee under the bill, filed for bankruptcy in 2011.

Colorado’s Republican party severed a contract Thursday with D.C.-based Strategic Allied Consulting after national party officials fired the same firm for potential voter fraud in Florida.

In Colorado, Strategic Allied Consulting was registering voters, said Colorado GOP Chair Ryan Call, who said they also had planned on using the firm for get out the vote efforts.

“The Colorado Republican party has to have zero tolerance for anything that would suggest fraud,” Call said. “When we were made aware of that, we severed ties.”

Earlier this week, a Palm Beach County, Florida elections supervisor discovered more than 100 potentially phony registration signatures and home addresses. Some of the home addresses matched those of gas stations and a Land Rover dealership, NBC News reported.

The national Republican National Committee had a $2.9 million contract to work in five swing states, including Nevada, North Carolina, Virginia and Colorado, Call said.

He wouldn’t say how much the Colorado GOP had paid to Strategic Allied Consulting because he said they were still sorting through invoices. He said it would all be reported on Federal Elections Commission reports, as required by law.

In August, Colorado Republicans paid $325,000 to a firm with the same name, according to the FEC database.

“I should say in terms of all the work they did and their employees, we had no problems at all with them,” Call said. “We had no issues we were made aware of and there were no issues that gave us any cause for concern. We have a very strict and high standard when it comes to doing work with the state party.”

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.